by Ellen Harvey, Harness Racing Communications

Dover, DE — Harness driver Tim Tetrick broke the world record for wins in a single season with his 1,078th victory of 2007 on Tuesday night (November 27) at Dover Downs.

Tim Tetrick celebrates in the winner’s circle after his milestone victory.

Tetrick, 26, got the win on a pacing mare, Martin Scharf’s Stonebridge Kisses, taking the lead in the final eighth of the mile for the win in 1:51.4. The previous record of 1,077 was set by Walter Case, Jr. in 1998.

Tetrick, a native of Geff, Ill., also broke the world record for single season earnings by a driver earlier this month. His current earnings on the racetrack are in excess of $16.4 million in 2007 alone.

Tetrick was joined in the winner’s circle by his parents, Tom and Mary Alice, who drove 13 hours from their farm in southern Illinois for the occasion, and his girlfriend, Ashley Viater, a student at Purdue University.

“I was happy when I won 1,000 races lifetime, I wasn’t thinking about this,” Tetrick said. “It’s a relief, but it’s been a lot of fun. There really wasn’t any pressure because no one was supposed to break this record. It’s a great achievement. It’s pretty neat.”

USTA/Ken Weingartner photos

Tim shares the happy moment with his girlfriend, Ashley Viater.

Tetrick has taken only four days off from driving in 2007 and intends to continue his schedule to put the record as far beyond reach as possible.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do for an encore,” he says. “It’s been a joy ride. It’s hard for me to picture how big this really is because I’ve been doing it. From the outside looking in, it’s a bigger feat. When I have time to look back, I’ll be like, ‘How’d I do that?’ I don’t know how to put it into words.”

Tetrick had tied the former record of 1,077 by piloting Warren Racing Stable’s S A Cheerleader to victory for his second winner of the night. His first win on the card came by guiding Vivere to a 1:53.1 score for Albert Windo and co-owner/trainer Billy Moffett.

Tetrick would add two more winners later on the program, for a total of five victories on Dover’s 15-race Tuesday card, giving him a season’s total of 1,080 at the end of the night.